Method of feeding molten glass.



K. E. PEILER.

METHOD OF FEEDING MOLTEN GLASS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV- 28.1916.

Patented Aug. 27, l9l8.

2 SHEETS'TSHEEI I.

I [7206-2250 IarZEfigZer Afly K. E. PEILER. METHOD OF FEEDING MOLTENGLASS APPLICATION FILED NOV. 28. |9|6 Patented A11 27, 1918.

- H E E T 2 2 SHEETS KQIZ FeaZem' n STATES PATENT onrucn.

KARL E. PEILER, or HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, nssreivon 'roHARTFORD-FAIRMONT COMPANY, or CANAJOHARIE, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION orNEW YORK.

'EETHOD or FEEDING MOL'I'EN GLASS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 2'7, 1918.

Original applications filed. August 6, 1912, Serial No. 718,538, andAugust 7, 1912, Serial No. 713,788.

- Divided and this application filed November 28, 1916. Serial No.133,948.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, KARL E. PEILER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State ofConnecticut, have invented new and useful Improvements in Methods ofFeeding Molten Glass, of which the following is a specification.

This invention is an improved process or method of separating andfeeding molten glass from a glass melting tank or furnace, or othercontainer or source of supply, in uniform masses or gathers, deliveredat uniform intervals of time to glass shaping molds, or to otherdevices, or for other purposes for which such uniform separating andfeeding of molten glass is desirable.

In this invention the molten glass is caused to flow from its source ofsupply through and from an outlet in a succession of waves or surges,propagated by means of sweeps or displacers of refractory materialoperated in various ways, two of which are illustrated in theaccompanyin draw= ings. In one of these, illustrated in Figures .1 to 5inclusive, the displacing member,

herein designated a sweep or paddle, is moved horizontally forward andback through the glass, toward and from the outlet, its forward strokeraising the surface level of the glass adjacent to the outlet, anddisplacing the raised portion through the outlet, and preferably makingits return stroke in a different and higher path. In the otherapparatus, illustrated in Figs. 6 to 12 inclusive, a plurality ofvertically moving displacers are employed, one of which segregates aportion of the glass in a pool adjacent to the outlet, while the other,descending into the segregated pool, displaces a desired amount of it byraising its surface level so that the amount of glass required for agather flows from the outlet, whence it is delivered in any desired orconvenient way to molds or other receptacles for shaping or otherwisetreating the glass.

In so far as this application relates to the invention as illustrated inFigs. 1 to 5 inclusive, it is a division or continuation of my pendingapplication Serial No. 713,538, filed Aug. 6, 1912, in whichcorresponding figures are shown and described in connection with claimsfor apparatus for carrying out this method; .andin so far as thisappllcation relates to what is shown in Figs. 6 to 12 1nclus1ve 1t isa-division or continuation of my pending application Serial No. 713,738,filed August 7, 1912, in which corresponding figures are shown anddescribed in connect1on with claims for apparatus for carrying out thismethod.

F gs. 1 to 5 inclusive are side views, in section taken approximatelythrough the longitudinal center of the glass conveying conduit, showingthe successive positions of the sweep or displacer, and thusillustrating the steps of its resulting operation. Figs. 6 to 11inclusive are similar side views in section taken through thelongitudinal center of the conduit, showing the successive movements ofthe displacers and the consequent propagation of the waves or surges ofglass. Fig. 12 is an end view in reduced scale, in section taken on theline 1212 of flows along the conduit, and in which the. glass ismaintained at approximately uniform level, either as a resultof theoperations of a so-called continuous melting tank i or by other wellknown means or methods.

The outlet or discharging end of the conduit terminates in a low wall ordam 2, the top of which is approximately at the normal level of theglass inthe conduit as shown in Fig. 1. The outer side of the wall ordam is provided with :1 depending apron or lip 3 to carry the glassclear of the end of the conduit. The conduit is preferably inclos ed bya hood 25 (Fig. 12) to retain the heat, which may be augmented by a jetor flame of gas from one or more nozzles.

The molten glass is impelled toward the end of the conduit and over the'damin successive waves or surges, each containing the required volumeor mass of glass for the desired drop or gather,-the wavesbeingpropapaths, especially when working in a r01 tively narrow conduit, sothat the sweep upon its return stroke passes over or by some of theforwardly flowing glass. Sultable mechanism for operating the sweep oraddle is shown in my prior application erial No. 713,538 above referredto.

In the operation of this embodiment of my invention, the sweep 4starting from its retracted and lower position illustrated 1n Fig. 1 ismoved forward through the position shown in Fig. 2 to that of Fig. 3,pushing before it a suitable quantity of the glass in a-wave-likeformation, which surges over the dam. 2- and settles down as shown inFig. 3, in the form of a drop or gather 5, thesuspending thread or cord6 of which is then severed by any suitable means, as by the shear blades7 and 8 shown in Fig. 4. Meanwhile the sweep has been raised, thusallowing the glass in front of it to sink down at 9 behind the dam,thereby checking the further flow of glass over the dam and serving toretract the glass and thus attenuate the connecting thread or cord 6.The heatconfined by the inclosing hood above referred to, augmented whennecessary by flame from suitable gas jets, maintains the glass in heatedcondition, so that the remaining stub of the severing thread or cord Sismore or less reabsorbed into and incorporated with the succeeding waveof glass to be brought forward by the next active stroke of the sweep.Having thus delivered a drop or.

gather of the glass, the sweep moves back in the direction of the arrowshown in Fig. 4 to its retracted position shownin Fig. 5, from which itis then moved downwardly to the first position shown in Fig. 1, thuscompleting its cycle of operations and getting behind another quantityof glass, which meanwhile has flowed forward to fill up the depressionleft by the discharge of the previous wave. The arrows shown upon thesweep indicate the direction of its next movement from the respectivepositions shown in these figures.

The amount of glass fed may be varied by varying the width of thesweep,-the length and rapidity of its forward stroke, and the depth ofits dip into the glass.

The severed drops of glass may be delivered to the molds or otherreceptacles for which they are intended, either by falling directly intothe molds, or, by falling upon a chute or conveyer, by which the dropsare transported to their destination. The length of theconduit may beproportioned and disposed so as to deliver the drops at the de- [siredlocation. Or it may be short, projecting from the tank or otherreceptaolefo'r the .glass only far enough to form a lip to hold" 1 Fromthe position shown in ward flow of glass from into the tank, or into apool of glass. In

such an arrangement the sweep may be moved forward and back in the samepath, since the glass is enabled to flow in front of the sweep from thesides of the path of movement of the sweep, when the latter is in itsbackward position.

The embodiment shown-in Figs. 6 to 12 inclusive is also illustrated inconnection with a conduit 15 like that of the previous figures, in andalong which the glass flows from a melting tank or furnace or othersource of supply. In this arrangement also the conduit is preferablyinclosed by a hood 25 (Fig. 12) like that above referred to, to confinethe heat of the glass, which may be regulated or augmented bysuitable'jets or flames of gas from one or more nozzles.

In this arrangementthe successive waves orsurges of glass are propagatedand carried over the dam 16 by the operations of a plurality ofdisplacers 17 and 18 made from refractory material, which project intothe glass through a slot or slots in the to. "The succession ofoperations of the displacers is illustrated in the figures, in each ofwhich the displacer which is next to be moved is indicated by an arrowpointing in the direction of its next movement.

Fig. l, the displacer moves down to the position shown in Fig. 7, andthus serves as a gate confining a pool of glass between it and the dam16 sufficiently to prevent the free backthe pool 19, the height of whichis also increased by the displacement of glass due to' the downwardmovement of the gate displacer 18. This displacer 18 should when 1n itslowest position be only sufficiently close to the bottom and sides ofthe conduit to prevent undue backward flow of the glass. The viscosityof the glass permits of considerable clearance between the displacersand the conduit walls, which is desirable onaccount of the somewhatrough character of the refractory materials employed, and also becauseof the expansion and contraction of the parts due to the. extremetemperature ranges to which they are subjected. From the position shownin Fig.- 7 the displacer 17 moves downwardly to the successive positionsshown in Fi s. 8, 9 and 10, thus raising to therequired eight the levelof the lass in the confined pool, and thereby furt or advancing the waveor sur e of glass and flowin it over the top or dam to the other side tereof, where it settles, suspended from the lip 20 in the form of a dropor gather 21, which is then released by means of suitable shear blades22 and 23 severing the thread or cord 24, as shown in Fig. 10. From theposition shownin Fig. 10 the displacers move through the positions ofFig. 11 to'their first position shown in Fig. 6, thus allowing moreglass to flow from the tank of supp y past the displacers to replace aquantity of glass equal to that previously displaced from the pool.

The width and depth of the conduit channel,'the size of the dis lacer17, and length of stroke or dip of t e displacers should be proportionedto the size of the masses or gathers to be made.

The displacing devices and shearing mechanisms may be driven by, or insynchronism with, the mechanism of the adjunctive or cooperatingmachinery to which the gathers are to be delivered.

In various ways which will occur to those familiar with this art theoperation of this method may be modified to suit different circumstancesor conditions of service.

I claim as my invention 1. The method of feeding molten glass insuccessive equal compact charges from a container having an outletcommunicating with the container above the normal level of the glass inthe container, which consists in periodically raising the level of adeterminate portion of the glass adjacent to the outlet -sufliciently todischarge the desired charge therefrom in a compact mass through theoutlet.

2. The method of feeding molten glass in successive equal compactcharges from a container having an outlet communicatin with thecontainer above the normal leve of the glass in the container, whichconsists in periodically raising the level of a determinate portion of"the glass adjacent to the outlet, moving said portion through theoutlet, suspending it from the outlet and severing the suspended portionfrom the remainder of the glass.

3. The method of feeding .molten'glass in.

successive equal compact charges from a container having an outletcommunicating with the container above the normal level of the glass inthe container, which consists in periodically raising the level of adeterminate portion of the glass adjacent to the outlet,-accumulating itinto a drop sus the outlet, accumulating it into a drop sus-' pendedfrom the outlet, attenuating and severing the suspending neck or thread,and reversing the direction of movement of the glass within the outlet.

5. The method of feeding molten .glass over a dam in successive equalcompact charges which consists in periodically raising the free surfaceof the glass adjacent to the dam, discharging a portion of this glassover the dam, accumulating said portion into a charge suspended from thedam and severing the suspended charge from the remainder of the glass.

Signed at Hartford, Connecticut this 17th day of November, 1916.

KARL E. PEILER.

